PREPARATION OF THE GROUND. 



kind of fence is most prevalent, and contractors from 

 these should of course be preferred. The best dikers 

 in the north of Scotland are perhaps those of the 

 middle district of Marr, in Aberdeenshire. The 

 most famed in the south are those of Galloway, 

 who practise a peculiar kind of coping, which is in 

 great repute. 



The cheapest way of constructing a paling, is to 

 drive upright posts into the ground, and nail spars 

 to them horizontally. This is the only mode of 

 forming paling, in fact, which will be found less ex- 

 pensive, even at the first outset, than a stone-dike. 

 The upright posts should not be made farther asun- 

 der than six or eight feet ; and the horizontal spars 

 not more than one foot ; and four rows of them will 

 be required in order to defend sheep. 



In wet land, another indispensable preliminary to 

 planting is ditching, for no kind of trees will thrive, 

 not even the most aquatic species, where water ei- 

 ther stagnates, or runs above the surface. To make 

 ditching effective, the nature of the ground must 

 be well considered, as different modes of proceeding 

 become necessary as this varies. When the soil is 

 of a light quality, and soft enough to let the water 

 filtrate easily, one ditch of proper dimensions, and 

 rightly situated, will dry a considerable extent of 



